We got back to camp and of course Emma's parents hounded her on where she was and why she with me. "Oh yes Mary Margaret I'm going to take your daughter's innocence and turn her evil. Just like me." It took all Emma had to not laugh, though she did look mortified. Mary Margaret, on the other hand, looked like she was about to faint.
"Oh come now mates, Miss. Swan can't be that innocent. She has a tattoo and a kid." Oh how much I wanted to set that dirty pirate on fire. "I'm sure she's more evil then we all know…"
"Hook, go away." Emma went to start a fire and cook food. It was another day of not finding Pan and one more day of not having Henry. I was glad that Emma wasn't amused by Hook. From what I could tell, she wasn't swayed by his 'charm' one bit.
The next morning, right when the sun was starting to rise, I woke up again. I looked over to where Emma slept but she was gone. Everyone else was there though. I got up quietly and started to walk in the woods. Without making noise, I walked up and saw her. I was surprised when I saw her aiming an arrow at a tree that had a bull's eye painted on it. She shot a few arrows and hit dead center every time. The conversation I had with Tinkerbell came back to mind. She said my true love would have a lion tattoo and could use a bow well. As she fired one last shot, I waved my hand and set it on fire. "What the…" I cleared my throat and she turned. "Regina…" She seemed to relax when she realized it was me.
"Nice shot Swan." I walked up as she pulled the arrows out of the tree.
"Thanks. What are you doing up?"
"Couldn't sleep. The pirate's drunken snoring woke me." I picked up the bow. "You're a good shot. When did you learn to do that?"
"I just picked it up while we were here. I saw Mary Margaret use them when we were in the Enchanted Forest and wanted to try it. Never got bored enough to actually try until we got here and I couldn't sleep. Have you ever tried?"
"No dear. A Queen, especially with magic, doesn't use weapons." An evil grin crossed her lips.
"A bet between two bored mothers?" I raised an eyebrow. What was she getting at? "You try it. If you hit the target, without using magic, you get the rest of the coffee beans."
"And if I lose?" She handed me an arrow.
"Come now, your Majesty, you never really lose and you know it." There was something in her voice that I couldn't place. It was a playfulness that I had never heard before. I rolled my eyes and aimed for the target. A moment later, I let the arrow loose and it zipped through the air. "Not bad Regina. You would've killed the target. I'll make sure to never piss you off if you have a bow in your hands."
"Thank you." We shot arrows for at least an hour to pass the time. It was fun actually. "I can see why you like this. It gets aggression out."
"Yes, it does. I think if I couldn't chop wood or shoot, I'd end up killing Hook."
"So he annoys you as well?" I pulled the remaining arrows from the tree and we began to walk back.
"You have no idea." She ran her hand through her hair. "He's a pig. I tell him I'm not interested but he keeps flirting with me. If I could cast a muting curse or something I…" Emma paused a moment. "Regina?"
"Hmm?" I raised an eyebrow at Emma. Knowing exactly what she wanted to ask me to do. "Oh dear I can't do that. I'd never hear the end of it. Now you on the other hand…."
"Nope." She raised her hands in mock defeat. "Don't teach me how to do that or my parents and Hook would never be able to speak again."
"Is that such a bad thing?" Emma said nothing; she just chuckled. The others were awake and moving around the camp. Emma glanced to me with a mischievous grin.
"No comment." I stayed my distance from Emma and the rest of the group for the most part. If I got near Emma, the Charmings hovered, and the pirate just smelt bad. I mean yes, we had to bathe in the river nearby but at least we didn't smell all that bad. What I wouldn't give to have a nice, long, hot shower with my brown sugar body wash.
"Thinking about your love interest?" I shot Tinkerbell a deathly glare as she walked up behind me. "No worries. No one heard."
"No I'm not. I'm thinking how happy I'll be when I get off this Godforsaken island and back home with my son." Tinkerbell popped a berry into her mouth and looked at Emma behind my shoulder.
"She shoots pretty well for only doing it a few days." How did she…?
"You were watching us?" Tinkerbell looked at me with a small smile.
"Not intentionally. The two of you were shooting for at least two hours and I walked a few yards away when I was getting water. She really likes you Regina."
"No she doesn't. We're just working together to get our son back."
"Our son? How do the two of you share a son if you're not together? I mean, magic is strong between the two of you but…"
"Not like that. She had him and I adopted him." Tinkerbell raised an eyebrow. "It was a closed adoption." I continued to tell her our story and the more I thought about our past the more a warmth started to form in my chest.
"Whatever you say Regina. Believe what you want but I see the truth." We turned when we heard Emma grumble and storm off. "Go after her. See what's wrong." I looked between Tinkerbell and the woods where Emma had stormed off for a moment.
As I walked up behind Emma she was sitting on a rock near the river. "Emma…" She groaned and kept her face in her hands. I took that as a sign to walk and sit beside her. "What've they done now?" She sat there in silence for a bit before sighing.
"They won't leave my past alone. They keep trying to talk to me about Neal and how he would want me to move on. They're trying to hook me up with Hook I just know it." A twitch of anger went through me.
"And you don't want to move on or is it the person you don't want?"
"I want to move on. I mean, I have moved on. Neal was an ass who hurt me. The only good thing he ever did was give us Henry." I frowned my brows at her words. Us. I knew it didn't mean anything but it felt like it did. "I have moved on but I can't tell them that."
"Why can't you tell them? Though, and I'm just putting this out there, if you want it kept a secret, don't tell your mother." Emma chuckled and dropped her hands. A sad smile crossed her lips as she watched the water pass.
"I can't tell them because it's someone…from their past." A list of people who were in town who were from their past went through my brain. That little piece of information didn't narrow the list down at all. I wanted to know but I knew I couldn't ask questions.
"Please tell me it's not Gold…for the love of God…" Emma's eyes grew wide and the color drained from her face.
"No! That's gross!" Her voice raised a few octaves as she tried to get the image out of her head. "That's just wrong….No…." She shuddered with the thought.
"Well that's good to know. I plan on killing him one day." Emma chuckled and shook her head.
"No. It's not Gold. Depending on who you ask, it's worse than him." Worse than him? Who could be worse than…? My eyes grew a moment. Does she…? "It's…."
"Emma? Are you….What are you doing out here with my daughter?" Snow's always annoyed me but when she just assumed I was up to something irritated me more.
"I'm listening to your daughter. Something that you apparently don't do." I stood and faced her.
"Well excuse me for being under a curse for twenty eight years and…"
"Hey!" We looked back at the blonde. "Shut up both of you. Mary Margaret, we were talking calm down. Regina isn't trying to turn me evil or whatever you and David think she tries to do every time we're alone."
"I'm sorry Emma…" She held up her hand. Snow stopped her apology as Emma walked past her.
"I just want to be left alone. I don't want to talk about my past. I don't want to talk about anything right now." Snow and I just stood there and watched as she stormed off deeper into the woods. I was worried about her being alone and so upset but I knew she could take care of herself.